The Conference 

Since 2010, The Open Science Summit has united researchers, life science industry professionals, students, patients and other stakeholders to explore the future of collaborative science and innovation.

2012 marks the Summit's third year. We will continue to expand a discussion of what we can achieve together. It's a discussion that's evolved steadily for decades, but one who's urgency is coming into focus as never before. This conversation is concerned with the capacity of scientists to work together, and the obstacles they face. 

Ultimately, these obstacles affect all of us, so the conversation takes on meaning for scientists and non-scientists alike. The event features in-depth sessions on new models for drug discovery and clinical trials, personal genomics, the patent system, the future of scientific communication, publication, reputation, accreditation, funding, and more.

Open Science

Science is arguably humanity's greatest achievement and one of our most innate pursuits.  Science is, by definition, for discovering the truths about our universe and then harnessing that knowledge for the benefit of all mankind.  It is meant to be a collaborative endeavor in which, even when competing, all participants are building on the efforts of one another to improve our collective understanding.   In practice, these ambitions have been subject to distortion and bias, but with a powerful new infrastructure of science, technology and people, scientists are now more able than ever to work towards the foundational ideal of standing upon giants’ shoulders.

We have the chance to adopt new models and build new institutions, better suited to conducting distributed, massively data-driven, collaborative science in the 21st century. This means rethinking the incentive structures and reputation systems that have governed science until now; moving away from old metrics like impact factor (which has a near death-grip on scientist's career prospects) and toward new ways of measuring reputation that reward scientific inquiry, discussion and participation.

Open Science is a movement for more efficient, more participatory and more inclusive inquiry, discussion, exploration and discovery. It is a movement to remember and empower an ideal; to carry us all forward in the understanding that together we can carry each other farther. 

The Series

A courageous contingent of early adopters is dragging institutional science into the 21st century.  Every year, the Open Science Summit serves as a meeting place for brave innovators and visionaries, but the movement is neither the beginning nor the end of the movement.
Our webseries hopes to extend and grow the Summit’s conversations by bringing them online and available for free to the public.

Presentations and interviews with attendees, presenters and leaders in science will go beyond the Summit and invite you to participate in the process – sharing your thoughts and extending the conversation. 

It Can’t Happen Without You

We are turning to you, the world, the people for whom and by whom the scientific pursuit of understanding has come so far; the people for whom and by whom science will continue to evolve. We are asking now for your help to take the next steps – to promote that evolution and be part of a new and better way forward. 

Your support will allow us not only to bring the Open Science Summit back this October, but to extend the conference’s mission throughout the year and across the globe through a freely-available, online video series.  We have made it thus far on the generosity of dozens of brave and visionary volunteers, but we would like to take the next step in our evolution: to open new channels and exhibit new ideas, to and from more people than ever before.

A movement for transparency, sharing and open-access is frightening to some of the current shareholders of science.  It's a movement that threatens the status quo with disruptive new ideas.  Turning to Kickstarter - to our friends and colleagues and the people who understand not only the importance of science, but of good science - of true and transparent science - to  you - we hope to address the people that Open Science campaigns for.  Who better to elevate Open Science than the people science serves?  We want you to hold stake in the future of science - to have your say about how we as a people should pursue our ceaseless curiosity, and to pursue yours in your own way.

Rewards

Beyond the most obvious rewards for being a part of something as important (and awesome) as the continued evolution of science and innovation, we want to give you a little something extra for your 100% tax-deductible support.  Check out the right-hand column for all the details and see below for some of the Open Science goodies we hope you'll love.

Thank You

Supporting this campaign means supporting an inclusive and extended conversation of meaning and merit; of communication and collaboration; of insatiable curiosity and tireless exploration; of science and of scientists.  We can’t wait to hear from you.  Thank you.